Midweek

In this Issue:

• Dr. Wente’s presidential address (Thursday, Nov. 16)
• Academic advising
• Having a go-to person

Beautiful cool weather continues. I went walking this morning and it was quite cold. Not sure how many of you have early-rising Deacs (or not-so-happy to rise early but they have 8 am classes Deacs), but mornings now are chilly.

I was talking to a sophomore student yesterday and was asking them how their semester had been so far. Their response was “way better than freshman year.” When I probed a little on why it is better now, the student talked about having figured out their friend group, settled into a routine in terms of things they were involved in, and decided on a major path.

I share that because I know there are probably some P’27s out there whose students may be calling/texting/etc. and sounding like they are still having a bumpy transition to college. And I want to reassure everyone that this is normal. The transition to college takes time (and frankly effort, which is not fun necessarily, but true). It can take a full semester, sometimes a full year. Don’t panic 🙂

Dr. Wente’s presidential address (Thursday, Nov. 16)

First up in news today, Dr. Wente’s presidential address will be held on Thursday, Nov. 16 at 4 p.m. at the Scales Fine Arts Center in Brendle Recital Hall. Doors open at 3:30 p.m., and a light reception for our campus community will follow the remarks.

There will be a livestream for parents and families to watch. I am still getting details on that, but will share it closer to the date of the event; stay tuned.

Academic advising

Your Deacs should be meeting with their academic advisers by the end of this week. That would be the Lower Division Advisers for first-years and sophomores (i.e., the adviser you have before you declare your major), or your major adviser (and minor adviser, if applicable) for students who have already declared.

The adviser-advisee relationship works like other relationships: you get out of it what you put into it. For some advisees, that relationship can be very transactional (e.g., I meet with you to share my ideas about my classes, and get my PIN to register). For others, that relationship can be deeper, more engaging (e.g., when I have a problem, something I am thinking through, I might come to you for mentoring, or just because I enjoy your company), etc.

As an adviser, I let the student drive that relationship. Some students want more regular meetings or emails, others don’t. There is not a right or wrong, just what is right for each student.

Having a go-to person

Thinking about academic advisers leads me to a related concept: students should have (or find) a go-to person on campus: someone they trust that can help them as a thinking partner and mentor when they need it. Their go-to person doesn’t have to be their academic adviser – it can be a favorite faculty member, a staff member they know, a graduate hall director in their residence hall, etc.

Wake faculty and staff want to have those strong relationships with students, so your Deacs should find a very receptive audience if they want to reach out to establish, or deepen, that kind of go-to relationship. One of the most valuable parts about my time at Wake was I had an English professor who I referred to as my ‘dad away from dad’ – a person who I could ask for advice, or hash out my thinking and get it set in my mind before I talked to my actual parents. And sometimes we just talked about our shared love of English literature, which was a great way to spend the occasional half hour.